1. there's nothing wrong with U/G filters if you're willing to do the w/c's and gravel vac to keep up with them. some people still swear by them.
2. nerdy... you haven't done a tank yet without fish-in cycling. AFAIK this is #3... #2 after you've been shown otherwise.
3. schools are much more likely to take to each other immediately if you add all the fish to a new tank (or newly decorated tank) simultaneously. much less likely to have that odd fish out that slowly deteriorates from stress and dies.
4. the idea that one 90 gal filter is enough and anything more is too much for a 10 gallon is ludicrous... especially a filter with bypass issues. if that were true, this would not have happened...
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forum...gnum-250-HOT&p=2186903&viewfull=1#post2186903
5. i too agree that steph has given stellar advice for stocking to a person who wants more species than is healthy for such a small tank. seems she's pretty aware of the limitations.
6. also agree on speeding up that cycle by whatever means possible. to give you an idea, nerdy... this is not all too uncommon...
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?254381-10g-isn-t-cycling-been-7-weeks
7. guppies and neons are not "hide in a cave" type of fish. neons may be "hide behind a plant" fish, but that's about it.
8. there's nothing wrong with aeration... especially when you decide to dump fish in the tank prior to finishing your cycle. nitrosomonas and nitrobacter bacteria are both highly dependent on healthy o2 levels for good growth.
9. my only issue with the U/G filter i saw was the exorbitant price that your "wonderful" store clerk was trying to charge you to get it setup. for jebus sake, it's a grate, a couple of lift tubes and an air stone to get it to work properly.... unless you're interested in an RUGF... in which case, that was still a completely ridiculous price IMHO.
10. interested in the far superior bio-filtration of a UGF or a RUGF, but don't want to have to be limited to cleaning it with a gravel vac? get yourself a sponge filter. the sponge filter can be broken down and removed from the tank for a proper thorough cleaning making cleaning a much simpler process.
last, but not least... NERDY... DO YOUR WATER CHANGES!!! you were given the opportunity to do things the easy way without harming your fish. you refused and came home with extra wet pets prematurely. it is now your responsibility to your wet pets to take responsibility for your own actions. if school and whatever was going to keep you from doing a water change or two every day for weeks on end, you should have waited until that was not your only choice.